


Family (The Headhunter Remix)

by a_q



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: F/M, First Meetings, Friendship, Remix
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-29
Updated: 2016-07-29
Packaged: 2018-07-18 08:48:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,705
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7308238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/a_q/pseuds/a_q
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The heart of Pepper's and Peggy's friendship is support; to approve, to assist, and in the end, to comfort.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Family (The Headhunter Remix)

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [If One Of Them Is Dead (The Two Can Keep A Secret Remix)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/7185605) by [melannen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/melannen/pseuds/melannen). 



**Bern, 1999**

On hindsight, Pepper knew she should have left her letter of resignation on Killian's desk before the holidays. If she had, she could have celebrated the New Year with her family, like she had originally planned. Of course that would have meant listening mother fretting about the caterer showing up on time, or if the dry cleaner had used the right starch on the tablecloths. The New Year's party was the highlight of mother's social calendar.

“Excuse me miss, your card was declined.” The cashier slid the credit card back to her over the marble counter. “Would you like to try another card?”

“Yes, thank you,” Pepper said and took her own credit card and handed it to the cashier.

It wasn't a surprise that the card was declined. Killian had probably used all what was left in the AIM account to buy a seat for the evenings dinner event. A chance to talk to the amazing Doctor Hansen was of course more important than Pepper's lunch. Even though Killian had sworn up and down that he would cover all the expenses, which was the least he could do since Pepper still missed a paycheck from December. She knew that she wouldn't get paid, which was yet another reason she should have left weeks ago.

“Here you go, this your receipt and the buffet line starts from the left. Have a lovely lunch!” the cashier said with a bright smile.

Pepper nodded and took the receipt, heading in the line with rest of the lunch crowd. The speakers and guests had more formal lunch set in the upstairs, but it was invitation only. Everyone else had to manage in the dining room downstairs. The line was long, so Pepper had time to plan her attack.

She filled her plate with three different hot dishes and plenty of salad, then added as many well-traveling items she could on her tray. The dinner rolls and fruit would fit in her handbag, and she didn't have to spent money on breakfast tomorrow. The last thing she wanted to do was call home and ask for money. It would only lead to a half-hour lecture about how she wasted her skills and education on a job that would never lead to any sort of career. Pepper didn't want to have that discussion, again. Especially since dad was right.

Pepper found herself a spot near the windows and settled to eat.

“Excuse me Ms. Potts, may I join you?”

Pepper looked up from her plate. A tall, distinguished woman stood next to the chair across the table. Pepper noticed the Chanel suit, simple string of pearls, the designer bag on her arm at one glance. Her hair was styled impeccably, and she carried herself with assured elegance.

Pepper nodded, setting her knife and fork down, wiping her hands to her napkin. “Of course, please, sit down. I'm sorry, have we met?”

She smiled and offered her hand. “Peggy Carter. Pleasure to finally meet you.” A quiet man in a dark suit appeared to pull the chair out for her and vanished again when Ms. Carter nodded at him.

“Please, I didn't mean to interrupt your lunch. I ordered tea to brought here, would you like some?”

Pepper nodded again. “Thank you, I would love to.”

She would've rather have coffee, but she had learned to drink tea too, when her mother had had her 'English phase' and she had insisted serving a proper afternoon tea every Sunday. Dad had sighed and rolled his eyes, but as always, they had both went along with mother's whims.

Pepper returned to her lunch. Whatever it was Ms. Carter wanted to discuss with her, she would surely bring it up on her own time.

The waiters came around with trays, setting down the fine porcelain cups in front of them, then the pot of tea and a cake tower filled with small, delicate things to eat. Ms. Carter's assistant watched the process sharply, and guided the waiters away when they had finished. Pepper realized that they had the whole table to themselves, even though the dining room was packed with people already and still more were lined up to the buffet.

“I heard that you are looking for a new job,” Ms. Carter said as she poured the tea.

Pepper turned to look at her. “Oh? How did you hear that?”

“Well, to be honest, I heard the AIM is lacking the funds to pay their bills, so I assumed.” She sipped her tea. “I do believe that you are wasting your potential with them. I have much more interesting challenge to offer you.”

“I'm sorry, but why would you offer it to me?” Pepper asked, pushing her empty plate aside and taking the offered teacup. There was small chocolates on the cake stand and she took one, savoring the taste. This was a strange discussion, but she didn't mind some free treats right now.

“I've heard great things about you, and I've seen how you manage Aldrich Killian.” Ms. Carter loaded her plate with every delicate treat there was on the cake stand. “If you are interested, I would like to offer this position to you,” Ms. Carter said.

“I'm sorry. What position is that?”

“Personal assistant to Tony Stark.” She watched her closely, like expecting a reaction. “Didn't I mention that?”

“No, I don't think you did.” Pepper put the teacup down and took her handbag, tossing the apple and banana in there, followed by the dinner roll. “Thank you for the tea, and offer. I have to decline.”

“Hm. Would it make any difference if I told you that the Stark family owns one of the finest private collections of art? And it has no curator at the moment?”

Pepper hesitated, and she immediately chided herself for falling such an obvious bait.

“I'll throw in a signing bonus, if you start right now,” Ms. Carter said.

“I can't start now...I mean, I won't. No. I don't want to take the job. Anyone in their right mind won't take that job.”

“Actually, the pay is so good that many would take it,” Ms. Carter corrected. “But I don't want those people. I want the right person, and I believe you are it.”

“I don't understand. Why do you want to hire me? I would imagine Mr. Stark has a whole army of people who take care of his every whim.” Pepper fiddled with the zipper of her handbag. “And I didn't plan to do this type of job in long term.”

“Plans will only get you so far,” Ms. Carter said. “Tony doesn't like that many people, and he trusts even less. There's only two people who I've heard him call friends, James Rhodes and Happy Hogan. I think they would like you, which means that eventually Tony will like you too.”

“Sounds complicated,” Pepper said.

“When you meet them, you'll see what I mean.”

There was a ruckus at the door, and Pepper turned to see what was going on. Apparently Stark had stopped to flirt with the cute cashier, which caused a block in the flow of people. Some where annoyed, some were delighted, and everyone was staring at him.

“Speak of the devil. I'll introduce you.” Ms. Carter stood up before Pepper could say anything to stop her, not that it would have done her any good. “Tony!” Her voice rang through the crowd, sharp like a snap of a whip.

For a second Pepper was sure that Stark would turn and run, but the burly bodyguard grabbed his arm and dragged him forward, hissing something to him. Stark compensated his momentary lapse by greeting people sitting around the tables, like that had been his plan all along. He made a show to notice them.

“Aunt Peggy! There you are! Happy New Year!”

Stark was obviously drunk, but he hid it well. Only the small discrepancy between his words and expressions gave him away. He leaned to peck a kiss on her cheek, which she accepted with small tilt of her chin.

“Hm. You've started celebrating early,” Ms. Carter said, her tone perfectly neutral as she sat back down and poured herself a fresh cup of tea.

“Haven't you heard, the world might end in...” Stark glanced at his watch. “Eight hours, twenty minutes. If that's true, I figured it would be best to be as drunk as possible. Take the edge off, so to speak. Now, what does a girl like you do in a place like this, auntie?”

“I came to hear you speak,” she said. “Since you missed the Christmas party this year.”

“Oh, right, right. Unfortunate scheduling conflict. I tried to aim at London, but I landed somewhere warm, with beach and mojitos.” He swiveled to look at Pepper, flashing a smile.“And who is this?”

“Happy, I would like you to meet Virginia Potts,” Ms. Carter said with a pleasant smile, touch too sharp to be genuine. “Tony's new personal assistant.”

Stark seemed genuinely confused by this, staring at Ms. Carter for a long, quiet moment. “No. You can't do that,” he said.

“I'm a member of the board in Stark Industries, dear. I had lunch with the Human Resources department head. Such a lovely woman, Mrs. Jenkins. She has pugs.” Ms. Carter sipped her tea.

Stark stared at her blankly, like he couldn't comprehend what he was supposed to do with that information. He turned to stare at her instead.

Pepper straightened her back, but held the eye contact, even when it became clear that Stark was trying to make her feel uncomfortable, force her to fill the silence. Pepper knew that tactic, and he wasn't going to win with it.

“Virginia. That's too long. Do you have a nickname? Vicky? Ginny? Something of the sort?”

“Pepper.”

He blinked. “Like the condiment?”

“Yes.”

“That's strange. Well, Pepper, I feel like it's only fair to tell you that my last personal assistant quit after a week. They had a nervous breakdown. Are you squeamish? Because you are going to see things. Weird things. Isn't that right, Happy?”

His bodyguard looked uncomfortable, glancing at Ms. Carter first, then back to Stark. “Ms. Carter, I don't think this is such a good idea,” Happy said. “I mean, nice to meet you Pepper, but this is a terrible job.”

"Listen to Happy. He knows."

Pepper stared at Stark, his smug face, and something pushed her to open her mouth. "I'll take the job."

Stark smirked and pulled a pen from his breast pocket and leaned to scribble something on the napkin. He pushed it across the table. "I pay you that, if you don't."

Ms. Carter reached over to snatch the napkin before Pepper even had the chance to look at it.

“Excellent! That's settled then. Happy, would you be a dear and introduce Pepper to Tony's schedule?” Ms. Carter folded the napkin and handed it to her assistant. She stood up, the man holding the chair for her. “I'll make sure you'll get the introduction packet and the company credit card.”

She held her hand out again and Pepper took it, feeling bit numb. She was already regretting this.

Ms. Carter shook her hand firmly. “Welcome to the team.”

 

**New York, 2008**

Pepper assembled the tea roses in the crystal vase, trying to combine the flowers in sort of relaxed bundle. Flower arrangements weren't her strong suit, but Peggy had asked her to make something on the small side table near the window. It was the least she could do for Peggy, so Pepper tried her best. When she was somewhat satisfied with the result, Pepper carried the vase to the table, setting them down so that the late afternoon sunlight hit them, bringing out the beautiful pink hues of the roses.

“Thank you dear, they look lovely. You have always had the eye for the detail,” Peggy said. She sat on the comfortable armchair, her bandaged leg propped up on the footstool. She had waved away questions about it, claiming that she had had a silly tumble on her afternoon stroll. Pepper was worried that it had been more than just a fall, but you couldn't get a straight answer out of Peggy if she didn't want to give it.

Since Tony had decided to go ahead with the Science Expo, they would be spending a lot more time in New York. It wouldn't be any problem to keep Peggy company as well, if she needed it. Pepper had already decided to ask the home care nurse about it.

“Would you like me to bring you a shawl? It's getting chilly,” Pepper said, her hands starting to tremble now that there was nothing to occupy her attention. The window was propped open to the terrace, the distant hum of the city streaming in.

“I'm fine.” Peggy pointed at the empty chair next to her. “Please, have a seat. The maid will bring us coffee and cakes, and a nip of brandy.”

Pepper sat down, smoothing her skirt over her knees, a nervous gesture that she had tried to shake for a long time. “Brandy at this hour?”

Peggy waved her hand, like such rules needed to be ignored as quickly as possible. “The nurse won't let me walk around much, so brandy and gossip are the sort of afternoon fun I can have. I did happen to catch Tony's latest press conference. Why don't you tell me about it?” Peggy settled back in her chair, like readying for a long story.

“I suspect you know the whole story already,” Pepper said. “It took me a while to connect the dots, but Agent Coulson works for you, doesn't he? I remembered I saw him in Bern.”

“No one works for me, not anymore,” Peggy said, but there was amused glint in her eye. “I might have suggested that Phil would be a good choice to approach you, that's all. I had nothing to do with it otherwise.”

The maid came in with the coffee, and Pepper took the offered cup. It was dark roasted and hot, just the type she liked.

“The organization has a complicated name, was there a story behind that?” Pepper asked, sipping the coffee.

Peggy cleared her throat pointedly. “Young lady, I can still spot an attempt to change the topic, especially a clumsy one.” The maid left the platter of cakes on the coffee table and then she left the room. Peggy waited until her steps quieted in the hallway. “Now, tell me about Tony.”

“Agent Coulson seemed the type who writes thorough reports,” Pepper countered. She didn't want to talk about the night Stane died, and her part in it. Not that she could ever forget it, but it felt like a wound that should be left to heal on its own time.

“You can tell me your version of the events. Have you had the chance to do that yet?”

Pepper shook her head. No one knew she had been part of it, except Agent Coulson, Tony and Rhodey. She could hardly talk to them about it, now could she?

Peggy didn't push her. She turned to look out the window, to the open sky over the city, and drinking her coffee, like it was any other afternoon to her. Pepper appreciated that Peggy gave her time to gather her thoughts.

“The betrayal hurt him the most, I think,” Pepper said quietly. “Because he didn't see it coming. That Stane would be the one who would try to kill him, that was inconceivable to him. You know his trust issues better than I do, so you can imagine what has it been like since then.”

“I doubt I know Tony better than you,” Peggy said. “Go on.”

“What scared me the most was how he focused on that suit so completely. It was like he wanted to get lost inside that...thing.” Her hands were shaking, so she reached to place the cup back on the tray. “It's ironic, you know. He stops making weapons, so he can focus on becoming one himself.”

Peggy watched her, her gaze kind and understanding. “It must be difficult to see that.”

“And you can say a lot about Obadiah Stane, but he knew how to run that company. Tony doesn't have the slightest clue of the day-to-day operations, and most of the department heads can't stand him, you know that. Tony being Tony, he will probably fire them all. That will be a disaster.”

“I know.”

“Then, of course, we are changing our entire business model from weapons manufacturing to...I don't even know to what. Alternative energy, I suppose? If Tony agrees to share his work with the arc reactor, and that's a big if.” Pepper pressed palm of her hand against her eyes, like she could push the headache away. “I destroyed the only grand-scale model of the arc reactor. That was dumb. We could've used that for the press releases.”

"You had to do it. It was the only way to stop Stane."

"I know. Doesn't make me feel any better, though." Pepper sighed and let her hands fall in her lap. She didn't want to think any of it, because then thousand problems sprouted from her thoughts, and then another thousand from trying to resolve the first thousand. It was pointless anyway. She shouldn't be dealing with this, that was Tony's job, but he wasn't interested about it. He only cared about Iron Man.

“Tony needs to find a new CEO,” Peggy said.

Pepper shook her head. “He won't trust anyone coming from the outside, and inside the company there's plenty of people who still support Stane. Considering the watered down version of the truth that we released as confidential memo, it's no wonder. They don't know what Stane did, or what he planned to do with the suit he build. Tony will never give the power to someone he doesn't trust.”

"Then I think it's a good thing he trusts you. You'll be perfect for the job," Peggy said.

"What?"

"It makes perfect sense. You are smart, organized, and you have the backbone needed for such a job. And the best part is, you know the company, and you know how to manage Tony. Who could be better?"

"No, no, you are not doing this again," Pepper said. "You can't swindle me into another impossible job and tell me it's for my own good!"

"Don't you trust me, dear?" Peggy asked, smiling sweetly.

Pepper scoffed. "Not in this, no."

Peggy leaned to snatch the phone from the table. "Too bad, you should. I was right back in Bern, and I'm right now. Let me think, what was the number..."

"What are you doing? You are not going to suggest this to Tony?"

"Of course not. Tony will come to the same conclusion on his own, I'll bet on it." Peggy tapped the phone against the armrest, thinking. "No, it will be much more helpful to get the board members supporting you. You can get straight to work without the long-winded board meetings. Yes. This is good. Almost everybody owes me some kind of favor, and the rest I know how to deal with."

Peggy looked so cheerful that Pepper didn't have the heart to stop her. She must've been truly bored if something like this brightened her day. Pepper reached to take the glass with brandy, and gulped that down. No one in their right mind would take the job as the CEO of the Stark Industries. Maybe that was what made her qualified.

 

**London, 2016**

“Your schedule is a terrible mess these days.”

_“Well, I forgot to ask you to teach Friday how to balance the week. Too late now.”_

Tony sounded tired. She could tell, even through the phone, even if he tried his hardest to hide it. Pepper pulled her legs up on the soft bed, balancing her drink against her knee. The hotel suite was beautiful, but cold. She pulled the wool shawl around her shoulders.

_“Still there?”_

“Yes.” She tasted the whiskey, enjoying the warmth it created. “It was a beautiful ceremony. You could have attended. It wasn't because of us, was it?”

_“No, I just don't deal well with funerals. Peggy would've understood.”_

Pepper felt relieved. They hadn't talked, so she hadn't been sure. “You need a new personal assistant, if Friday can't manage.”

_“Impossible. No one can beat Peggy's accomplishment. She found you.”_

“You make it sound like I was some lost puppy she let in from the rain,” Pepper said, forcing her voice not to quiver.

_“No, that's the wrong way around. I was the lost puppy. Peggy found me a home.”_

“That's not true.” Pepper brushed the tears away with her sleeve. How ridiculous. Peggy would've been furious if she had known.

_"I made you cry."_

"No, it's been a long day." Pepper leaned to push the empty glass on the nightstand.

_"I think Peggy might have made you a president next."_

Pepper laughed. "I was afraid of it. I can manage a lot, but I never managed her."

_"The secret was to do what Peggy said."_

They were silent for a long while. She heard Tony pouring a drink, the quiet chatter of television turned low. Peggy crawled under the blanket, leaning her head against the pillow. "Still there?"

_"Always."_

"Give me an hour with Friday, I teach it some tricks. Your schedule will never be unbalanced again."

_"Hm. Chick fight. I like it."_

"Oh, I forgot how ridiculous you are."

_"Did you?"_

"Not really." Pepper stared at the large print on the wall, trying to remember who it was by. "Do you remember Bern? When Peggy came to offer me the job, and you wrote something on a napkin?"

_"Vaguely."_

"You didn't want me to take the job. How much did you offer?"

_"1.5 million."_

Pepper laughed again. "No wonder she didn't let me see that! I would've taken the money, and not even the great Peggy Carter would've talked me out of it."

_"Work smart, not hard. She was great, wasn't she?"_

"Yes, she was," Pepper said quietly. "She really was.”

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Red, Hot & Blue (The Assorted Gourmet Peppercorn Remix)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/7453588) by [teaberryblue](https://archiveofourown.org/users/teaberryblue/pseuds/teaberryblue)




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